The great mercenary: Xhaka equals Bayer’s record, slap in the face for Okafor’s Milan

Christian FinkbeinerFootball boss

Noah Loosli (Bochum): Witnessed the 3-2 win against Bayern Munich on the pitch for at least a few seconds after coming on as a substitute late in stoppage time.

Cédric Zesiger (Wolfsburg): Still has to make do with the role of reserve player and is on the bench against Dortmund (1-1) for ninety minutes.

Gregor Kobel (Dortmund): Is powerless to score the goal and make the score 1-1 in Wolfsburg.

Nico Elvedi (Gladbach): Receives a yellow card in the 2-0 defeat in Leipzig and has to sit out the next match at home against Bochum due to a suspension.

Jonas Omlin (Gladbach): Is on its way back and should make a comeback in March. The Gladbachers can urgently use him in the fight against relegation.

Kevin Mbabu (Augsburg): Was substituted with fifteen minutes to go in the defeat in Mainz (0-1).

Ruben Vargas (Augsburg): Was able to put Augsburg ahead in the 0-1 draw in Mainz, shortly before conceding a goal. But Mainz keeper Zentner parried his header powerfully.

Silvan Widmer (Mainz): The captain witnesses Bo Henriksen’s victorious debut from the substitutes’ bench after recently being sidelined due to flu.

Edimilson Fernandes (Mainz): The defender will miss Mainz’s second win of the season due to an ankle injury.

Granit Xhaka (Leverkusen): After the gala against Bayern, Nati’s captain is also in the middle of the work victory against newly promoted Heidenheim. Thanks to the 2-1, Leverkusen remains unbeaten in their 32nd league match, setting a Bayern record.

Leonidas Stergiou (Stuttgart): Comes on as a substitute in the closing stages of the 2-1 win in Darmstadt. Stuttgart remains on course for the Champions League.

Manuel Akanji (Man City): The Nati defender played out the 1-1 draw against Chelsea at home – it was another setback in the title race for the “Sky Blues”.

Zeki Amdouni (Burnley): A 0-5 defeat against Arsenal follows. The ex-FCB striker has been forced out during the break – and remains concerned about his stay in the league with Burnley.

Fabian Schär (Newcastle): Long-time Newcastle favorite, making his 25th appearance in the 2-2 draw against Bournemouth. Receives a yellow card in the 87th minute.

Ricardo Rodriguez (Turin): The “Capitano” from Torino has to miss the match once due to muscle problems – his team still wins 2-0 against Lecce.

Noah Okafor (Milan): Bitter 2:4 defeat for Milan in Monza. Okafor is in the starting line-up, but is part of a trio that is eliminated at halftime.

Michel Aebischer (Bologna): Played a short game away at Lazio Rome and picked up a yellow card in injury time. In the end he celebrates a 2-1 victory with Bologna. It is the fourth trio in a row. This means fifth place in the table.

Remo Freuler (Bologna): Serves a yellow card suspension in Rome.

Dan Ndoye (Bologna): Can play 17 minutes against Lazio.

Yann Sommer (Inter): Plays to zero for the 15th (!) time in the competition. And that in 25 games.

Eray Comert (Nantes): Returns to the squad after his ankle injury, but did not play in the 2-0 defeat to PSG.

Yvon Mvogo (Lorient): Celebrated their third win in a row with a 3-1 win in Strasbourg and crossed the line again with Lorient.

Becir Omeragic (Montpellier): With the 3-0 win, after five games without a win, you play at the back as usual. Is warned and substituted with fifteen minutes to go.

Silvan Hefti (Montpellier): Also played on the right in the 3-0 win against Metz and repeatedly went into attack. But he can’t do anything countable.

Vincent Sierro (Toulouse): The captain is the decisive player in the victory in Monaco. At 1-0, he caught Philipp Köhn with a free kick from more than thirty meters, and Sierro prepared the winning goal with a corner cross.

Breel Embolo (Monaco): Continues to work on the comeback after the ACL tear. He should return to team training in March.

Philipp Köhn (Monaco): Not looking good at 1-2 against Toulouse at 0-1. When Sierro takes a free kick, he expects a cross – and is wrong-footed by the direct shot.

Denis Zakaria (Monaco): Unlike the match a week ago, he was unable to put an attacking accent against Toulouse and also received a warning.

Fabian Rieder (Rennes): After breaking his foot, he still has to wait for his comeback and he also misses the 3-1 win against Clermont.

Jordan Lotomba (Nice): Played on the right side of defense in the 0-1 defeat in Lyon.

Ulisses Garcia (Marseille): Conceded the decisive goal with Marseille in Brest shortly before the end, despite being in the majority.

Djibril Sov (Seville): Subbed after 70 minutes in the uninspiring 0-0 draw in Valencia. Stay pale – just like the whole team.

Maxime Dominguez (Gil Vicente): The midfielder played the first half in the 0-1 win against Vizela, and in the 3-1 win against Estoril Praia he was on the field for 87 minutes.

Francesco Ruberto (Vizela): Was in the starting line-up against Benfica, but had to leave the field injured after 25 minutes in the 6-1 defeat.

Miro Muheim (Hamburg): HSV has to settle for a 2-2 draw in Rostock. Ex-Expe Muheim was substituted injured shortly after the break.

Jasper van der Werff (Rostock): After the 0-0 draw against Osnabrück, the defender is also not in the selection against Hamburg.

Jan Elvedi (Kaiserslautern): The struggling Lauterers cannot get past a 1-1 draw against Nuremberg. Elvedi continues to play.

Filip Stojilkovic (Kaiserslautern): After three recent appearances, the striker has to watch from the substitutes’ bench against Nuremberg.

Saulo Decarli (Braunschweig): Only came as a substitute in the 0-1 defeat against leader St. Pauli.

Carlo Brunner (Schalke): Returns to the starting line-up after a yellow card suspension and illness and celebrates a 1-0 win with Schalke against Wehen Wiesbaden – he plays 80 minutes.

Martin Angha (Wehen-Wiesbaden): A calf injury prevented him from playing for Schalke.

Christian Fassnacht (Norwich): The man is in good shape. The attacking player scored again as a wild card – this time in the 4-1 home win against Cardiff City.

Michael Frey (QPR): Had to play twelve minutes in the 1-0 win against Bristol City. It is the fourth short appearance for the striker.

Simon Sohm (Parma): If the leader is on the field for 45 minutes, he must leave during the break. Parma wins 3-2 against Pisa.

Pajtim Kasami (Sampdoria): Gives Sampdoria a 1-0 lead against Brescia – it is his third league goal this season. In the end the result was only 1:1.

Natan Girma (Reggiana): Comes into play against Ternana (0:2) from the 61st minute.

Samuel Ballet (Como): Used day for the former Winterthur striker. He came on as a substitute in the 69th minute, received a yellow card shortly afterwards and ultimately lost 3-0 to Palermo.

Stefan Knezevic (Charleroi): The defender was recently out of action for a long time due to a thigh injury, but is now once again not in the selection for the 0-0 draw against Leuven.

Cameron Puertas (Saint-Gilles): Provided an assist in the 3-1 away win against Kortrijk, but had to go down in the 69th minute. Union Saint-Gilloise leads the rankings with eight points.

Andi Zeqiri (Genk): Fifth competition goal for the ex-Basel striker. He came into action in the final phase against Molenbeek and made the final score 3-1 in the 90th minute.

Franck Surdez (Ghent): No appearance in the 2-0 away win against Eupen. The winger just sits on the bench.

Noam Baumann (OFI Crete): In today’s match against Panserraikos, the goalkeeper hopes to end Crete’s losing streak, which last lasted three games in the league.

Steven Zuber (AEK Athens): Played 70 minutes as captain in the 3-0 win over Kifisias before making way for regular captain Sergio Araujo. Thanks to the home win, AEK are at the top, one point ahead of their pursuers PAOK Saloniki and Panathinaikos, who are equal on points.

Benjamin Siegrist (Celtic): Celtic drew 1-1 at home against Kilmarnock. Goalkeeper Siegrist is once again not in the squad – for the 25th time in 26 league games so far this season.

Gregory Wüthrich (Sturm Graz): Just like against Salzburg, Sturm again played 1-1 – this time against Rapid Vienna. Wüthrich is on the field for 72 minutes as a central defender. In the rankings, Graz is two points behind leader Salzburg.

Bryan Okoh (RB Salzburg): The defensive talent missed the entire preliminary round due to a thigh injury. Now he could gain match training in the away match at FC Dornbirn in the 2nd division. It’s a strong comeback: he contributed a goal and an assist to the 2-1 win.

Leo Lacroix (Craiova): Played as a central defender in the 1:3 home match against Cluj.

Nicolas Bürgy (Viborg): After the winter break, Viborg suffered a 1-2 defeat in their first match against Odense – without defender Bürgy, who was only a substitute. Viborg remains in third and last place.

Petar Pusić (NK Osijek): Successful Sunday for the ex-Hopper. The midfielder scored in the 3-0 home win against Gorica to make it 2-0 – before being substituted in the 86th minute. Osijek is in fourth place, well behind the top trio Rijeka, Hajduk Split and Dinamo Zagreb.

Josip Drmic (Dinamo Zagreb): No longer in the selection for the 1-0 home win against Varazdin. His last competitive match was in early November.

Zoran Josipovic (NK Istra): Not in the squad for the 1-1 draw against Slaven Koprivnica.

David Mistrafovic (Varazdin): Only came on as a substitute in the 0-1 defeat in Zagreb.

Gokhan Inler (Besiktas Istanbul): The former Nati captain has not yet played for Besiktas this season – today his team faces Konyaspor at home.

Marco Burch (Legia Warsaw): For the first time since October, the ex-Lucerne player can play for Legia Warsaw again in the competition. The central defender played until the 62nd minute in the 1-1 draw against Puszcza Niepolomice and was warned.

Leo Seydoux (Dordrecht): In the 1-0 win against Venlo he was a reserve for the third time in a row.

Kwadwo Duah (Ludogorets Razgrad): Has been an important part of the team lately – and also scores regularly. In today’s home match against Cherno More, the striker is aiming for his third win in a row with Ludogorets.

Haris Seferovic (Al Wasl): Contributed two goals in the 7-1 draw against Emirates Club in the round of 16 of the UAE President’s Cup.

Xherdan Shaqiri (Chicago Fire): The new MLS season starts on February 21. Most recently, Shaq dazzled with a free kick in a preseason match.

Maren Haile-Selassie (Chicago Fire): The season starts on February 21.

Roman Bürki (St. Louis): The season starts on February 21.

Allan Arigoni (Chicago Fire): The season starts on February 21.